Cha'Kyra Thomas: Family sues Detroit school after gym teacher hurls metal hockey stick at student, 11

Lawyer Jon Marko claims that Thomas, who has brain damage as a result, instantly felt confused and dazed after being hit
UPDATED FEB 27, 2023
Cha'Kyra Thomas needed several head staples and suffered brain trauma (Screengrab/Fox2 Detroit)
Cha'Kyra Thomas needed several head staples and suffered brain trauma (Screengrab/Fox2 Detroit)

DETROIT, MICHIGAN: A Detroit schoolgirl ended up in the hospital after being struck in the head with a metal hockey stick hurled by a gym teacher. As per the attorney Jon Marko, the tragedy occurred in May at the Hope Academy in Detroit, Michigan, and the young girl named Cha'Kyra Thomas, 11, suffered brain trauma. Jacqueline Brown, a substitute teacher, was trying to throw the stick at a different student because she was upset with one of the other students. 

"She was yelling and doing some cussing," stated Thomas, adding, "The next thing I know I feel something hard on the side of my head." Brown has since been convicted of child abuse and the little girl's family is suing the school and the substitute. Marko claimed that the district's and teacher's justifications don't sync up, reports FOX 2 Detroit. "Her excuse was she was trying to throw the hockey stick at another kid, and hit her by accident," the lawyer stated.

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What happened to Cha'Kyra Thomas?

Lawyer Jon Marko claims that Thomas, who has brain damage as a result, instantly felt confused and dazed after being hit by the object. After it occurred, her mental state deteriorated to the point where she wandered around the school. "When the mother of this little girl gets to the school and is wondering, 'where is my daughter,' they couldn't even find her," Marko stated. "She was found wandering the hallways confused with blood running down her face," said the lawyer. 

'The teacher never apologized'

The injury was bound with staples after the child was taken to the hospital. According to Marko, Brown, who received her sentence last week in Michigan, never expressed regret to the young girl or her family for the harm she had inflicted. "What kind of a teacher throws a hockey stick at a fifth-graders head? I mean you obviously have to have something wrong with your head," Marko stated.

'I don't remember real good'

As per reports, Thomas testified during the punishment hearing that it hurt just to be around Brown. "Just looking at her brought back all the memories of getting hit in my head," said the girl. Thomas had to change schools because of her ongoing stress, and she is now seeking counseling to help her deal. She claimed that the event continues to give her nightmares. "It's like flashes what happened that day," Thomas stated. "I got hit on my head I remember kids just laughing at me." "My memories, now I got to wear glasses and I don't remember real good," said the young girl. 

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